Facial skin rejuvenation has been accomplished by chemical treatment referred to as “chemical peels” or laser treatment referred to as “laser surgery” and exfoliation by machine driven means, such as with emery paper. Such methods generally require medical supervision and involve some risk of deleterious side effects as well as pain and discomfort during treatment. These methods all require long recovery time between treatments.
Microdermabrasion (e.g., microexfoliation, particle skin resurfacing) is a technique in skin care in which a controlled exfoliation of the skin is performed to improve and remove skin abnormalities. A typical microdermabrasion machine consists of a compressor to project inert crystals of corundum (aluminum oxide or alumina) through a tube into a hand piece manipulated by a technician over the skin of the subject. The compressor projects the corundum across the skin with variable pressure while the hand piece is in contact with the skin. This induces an abrasion action which removes the top layer of skin. At the same time, through another tube within the hand piece, the used corundum and abraided skin are vacuumed into another container for disposal. As can be appreciated, the need for the compressor, the supply of corundum, and a vacuum source and disposal container are suitable for a specialty clinic with trained technicians.
What is desired is an inexpensive method that may be safely applied upon a human subject's own skin to achieve the desired rejuvenation without pain or discomfort during treatment.